For the last two years I have been earning my money entirely online. Yes, making money online has a bit of a scammy sound to it but for many people it is a reality, and I am not exaggerating when I say there are regular people earning 5+ figure a month salaries completely through their online endeavors.
However, for every one of those there are probably hundreds of people who are not earning a dime online despite trying to. And yet there is something very sweet about earning that first dime online.
It’s motivation to pursue it further. I remember the first few dollars Vicky and I earned through her food blog by putting up a few adsense ads.
It wasn’t much, but it was the start of us earning a few hundred dollars, then a few thousand, and now over ten thousand dollars every month. In this post we are going to explore the many ways that people are earning money online.
I have scoured the web looking for the best posts about making money online as well as doing my own research to find individual websites/companies, so that I could compile what is no doubt the most comprehensive list to date of ways to make money online. Please enjoy this list and PLEASE SHARE so that others may benefit from this research.
Not only have I spent many hours putting this together, but by using assistants to help with research and formatting, spent money. But it’s worth it to bring you what I consider to be valuable content!
Additionally, some people have commented that they found this list overwhelming, so I have put together a Make Money Online Starter Pack.
Exclusive Bonus: Download my free Make $Money$ Online starter pack. Includes the 15 tools I use daily to run my business plus links to 30 income reports from bloggers who made $300k+ online.
In fact, if you would like to share it right now, you can do so and download a PDF at the same time – trust me, you won’t regret it!
Table Of Contents
As this post is quite long I have created a table of contents so you can more quickly identify the relevant parts. Simply click on the topic and you will be taken there.
PROLOGUE: DISCLAIMER
CHAPTER 1: WRITING
1.1 Blogging
1.2 Blog/Website Monetization
1.2.1 Contextual Links and Sponsored Posts
1.2.2 eBooks
1.2.3 Podcasting
1.2.4 Online Courses
1.2.5 Membership Sites
1.2.6 Pay Per Click
1.2.7 Pay Per View
1.2.8 Private Blog Networks
1.3 Revenue Sharing
1.4 Freelance Writing
CHAPTER 2: SELLING
2.1 Affiliate Marketing
2.2 Selling Your Own Products
2.2.1 Large Market Places
2.2.2 Arts and Crafts
2.2.3 Music
2.2.4 Videos
2.2.5 Stock Photography
2.2.6 Websites
2.2.7 Domain Names
2.2.8 Collectibles
2.2.9 Recycled Gadgets
2.2.10 Souls
2.2.11 Your Designs
2.2.12 Apps
2.2.13 Paintings
CHAPTER 3: RENTING
CHAPTER 4: SOCIAL MEDIA
4.1 Twitter
4.2 Facebook
4.3 Pinterest
CHAPTER 5: FINANCE
5.1 Peer-t0-Peer Lending
5.2 Stock Trading
5.3 Switch your bank account
5.4 Sign up for a credit card or bank account
CHAPTER 6: GAMBLING
CHAPTER 7: FREELANCING/ PAY-PER-PROJECT
7.1 Gigs Websites
7.2 Large Freelancing Communities
CHAPTER 8: NEWSLETTER MARKETING
CHAPTER 9: GIVING ADVICE
9.1 Reading or responding to Emails
9.2 Participating In Forums/Discussing Boards
9.3 Giving Advice online or via telephone/sms
CHAPTER 10: CONSUMER RESEARCH
10.1 Product Testing
10.2 Listen To Music
10.3 Paid To Play Games
10.4 Online Focus Groups
10.5 Surveys
10.6 Mystery Shopping
10.7 User Test A Website
CHAPTER 11: TRANSLATION AND TRANSCRIPTION
11.1 Transcribing
11.2 Translating
11.3 Tech Support
CHAPTER 12: SHOPPING, PHONE APPS, AND EXPLORING
12.1 Shopping
12.2 Phone Apps
CHAPTER 13: CROWDFUNDING
CHAPTER 14: MISCELLANEOUS
CHAPTER 15: RESOURCES
15.1 MMO BOOKS
15.2 MMO FORUMS
15.3 Sources
PROLOGUE: DISCLAIMER
I have not tried all of these websites. In fact I have not even tried the majority of them.
That would be lunacy. I cannot defend each individual company.
Many of them offer the same thing. What I can say is that they have been listed in reputable sources and that I have visited each website individually to verify that at the time of writing it was working and appeared legitimate.
You may not find everything to be an option for you. Some things are selective in that they require you to have an established website with a certain amount of traffic, or to live in a certain part of the world.In some cases I have used affiliate links.
This means if you sign up I receive a commission. This does not affect you in any way (neither negatively nor positively), but I would appreciate it if you consider using my affiliate links as a means of supporting this blog and the way that I earn my income online.
The vast majority of these links (98%+) are not affiliate. Lastly, please do not expect to turn this list into a 5 figure a month income, at least right off the bat.
Though it is true that many people are using the below websites to do just that, it is often the result of a lot of hard work and time spent building websites, an audience, etc. This is not a get rich quick scheme.
It took me nearly a year before I was earning a few thousand dollars a month online, and I actually consider that rather quick. Before diving into anything I highly recommend that you do a quick search along the lines of “review of company X” to see the results of people who have tried these strategies in depth.
Also check the sources at the end as they may provide more in depth reports on specific websites. Don’t confuse an attractive website with legitimacy.
Moreover, be suspicious of any site that requires you to pay to join.
CHAPTER 1: WRITING
In this section we highlight ways you can make money from writing. In my experience, if there is one skill that trumps all others in effectively earning money online it is the ability to write.
No other skill has the versatility that writing has. Good writers are sorely underrepresented. If you can write, you can earn money online (with or without a blog) – guaranteed!
1.1 Blogging
The act of blogging in and of itself is often free, but that doesn’t mean that blogging can’t serve as a useful platform from which you can earn money online. Many people are earning over 5 figures a month “just blogging”, by combining it with things like affiliate sales, ad networks, and paid reviews.
Go to the last chapter of this post to see all of the blogger income reports I have collected. There are thousands of blogs started everyday and most of them die off over the course of a few months/years.
From personal experience I think it is best to start a blog with a purpose/passion – aside from making money. This will help you to be successful in the long run, as it is normal to spend many months blogging without earning anything. Here are some of the best blogging sites you can use to get started:
How To Start A Blog - a post I wrote that will get you up and blogging in a matter of minutes.
Blog.com - Creates a free blog and hosts it for you for free. Your domain will look like yourdomain.blog.com.
Blogger.com - Free weblog publishing tool from Google, for sharing text, photos and video. Quick and easy to setup and links with your Gmail account.
Livejournal - A service for journals and blogs, that also offers privacy controls, photo storage, publishing tools, style templates, and online communities for many interests.
Tumblr - Post anything (from anywhere!), customize everything, and find and follow what you love.
WordPress.com - Free blogs managed by the developers of the WordPress software. Includes custom design templates, integrated statistics, automatic spam protection . You domain will look like yourdomain.wordpress.com It’s different from Word Press.org.
WordPress.org - A web software you can use to create a beautiful website or blog, with your own domain name.
1.2 Blog/Website Monetization
If you have a blog or a website with content and a following, I’m going to discuss a few ways you can monetize it through advertising and information products. Concerning the latter, you certainly don’t need a blog to pull it off.
Anyone can sell an ebook, for example. But it is just so typical for bloggers to do these things, because they tend to be more successful when you have an audience, that I decided to include them in this section.
Still, if you don’t have a blog, you just need to think of another way to reach your target audience (like a forum, or a simple landing page).
1.2.1 Contextual Links and Sponsored Posts
If you have a blog there are many ways you can monetize the writing portion of it, such as reviews, sponsored posts, and more. This is actually how I started earning serious money online.
Often, companies will pay you to link to them on your blog because they want the increased exposure as well as the “link juice” that they get from an inbound link to their website. Be careful with this one because in some instances it can violate Google’s TOS, which, in the most extreme circumstances, can result in your website being removed from the search engines.
Blogitive – Get paid weekly via PayPal for posting stories that interest you.
Blogsvertise – Make money from advertising and generate ad income from your blog.
BlogToProfit – Make $250 dollars or more by writing new posts on your blog.
Creative Weblogging – Write 7 to 10 posts per week for their network and they will pay you $225 per month.
Digital Journal - A digital media news network with thousands of Digital Journalists in 200 countries around the world.
Expo TV - Consumer generated video, social media and peer to peer recommendations enable influential consumers to share their authentic reviews and opinions.
LinkLift - An international online marketing service provider based in Berlin. I have personally used Linklift and profited hundreds of dollars from doing so.
I’ve earned 635 euros on Linklift for my websites
LinkVehicle – Easy system to sell blog posts.
LinkWorth- Easy text link ads for advertisers and webmasters to boost link popularity.
LoudLaunch – Blog about the advertiser’s campaign releases that meet your interests. They pay once a month.
Social Spark - A blog marketing site that connects advertisers with bloggers for sponsored blog posts.
$330 earned on social spark
Pay Per Post- Get paid as much as $500 or more a month, writing articles and reviews of their sponsors on your blog.
PostJoint - PostJoint enables content marketers and publishers to swiftly arrange deals on their own terms. Marketers can quickly distribute their content and publishers can easily grow and monetize their sites.
I’ve earned $1653 on PostJoint
Review Me - After your blog has been accepted in their network, they will pay you $20 to $200 per post that you write to review products/advertisers.
Smorty – Smorty is a community site that helps bloggers generate a better income, and it could be defined as a network devoted to blog advertising. The site is split into two main sections. Earn $6 to $100 dollars per post you write on your blog, depending on the overall popularity and page rank of your blog.
SponsoredReviews - A blog post service that connects advertisers with bloggers willing to write paid posts about their services and products. They charge a 35% transaction fee for their services.
Teliad - SEO company for international backlinks & blogs. I have personally used Teliad and made nearly $1k doing so. They pay monthly.
Every month I receive ~$130 from Teliad
1.2.2 eBooks
It seems that just about every popular blogger has their own ebook(s) these days. Part of the reason is that there are just so few barriers to entry – if you want to write a book and self publish, go ahead! It can be a “passive” income stream for life (though that should not be confused with the fact that it can be a lot of upfront work).
bookbaby.com – Sell more eBooks with a professionally designed cover. The industry’s best place for valuable tips on how to promote and sell your book.
flickrocket.com – Set up your ebook own shop.
kindle.amazon.com – The Amazon Kindle is a series of e-book readers designed and marketed by Amazon.com. Amazon Kindle devices enable users to shop for, download and sell.
payhip.com – Upload e-books and sell directly on Twitter, Facebook or your website. Sell your ebooks to your fans and followers and get paid instantly via PayPal.
secure-ebook.com – A website with an integrated Blog engine that will help you sell more eBooks; The renowned Secure-eBook fully automated purchase process.
1.2.3 Podcasting
Podcasting is all the rage lately and it is becoming the new, preferred form over content to connect with your audience. In addition, it can also be a lucrative form of income if you draw in enough of an audience.
Consider Entrepreneur On Fire, a podcasting series/blog, which makes over $40k per month on direct advertising through their podcasting. Here are some popular business podcasts:
ENTREPRENEUR ON FIRE – John Lee Dumas
SIX PIXELS OF SEPARATION – Mitch Joel
MARKETING OVER COFFEE – Chris Penn and John Wall
MARKETING SMARTS – Kerry O’Shea Gorgone of marketingprofs
THE ENTREPRENEUR’S RADIO SHOW – Travis Jenkins
SOCIAL TRIGGERS INSIDER – Derek Halpern
EBOOK NINJAS – Joshua Tallent, Toby Stevenson, Chris Casey
INSIDE PR – Gini Detrich, Joseph Thornley and Martin Waxman
350 THIRD – Anders Brownworth, Scott Barstow
EVENTUAL MILLIONAIRE – Jaime Tardy
YOUR GRAND IDEA – Todd Skaggs and Kevin Carter
THE SOLOMO SHOW – Cory O’Brien & Adam Helweh
THE FRIDAY FIVE – Tom Webster
THE WORK TALK SHOW – DJ Waldow and Nick Westergaard
INSPIRING WORDS OF ENCOURAGEMENT - Zig Ziglar
ONLINE MARKETING MADE EASY – Amy Porterfield
THE FIZZLE SHOW – Corbett Barr, Chase Reeve & Caleb Wojcik
THE START UP SHOW – Seth Godin
PODCAST ANSWER MAN – Cliff Ravenscraft
THIS IS YOUR LIFE – Michael Hyatt
SMART PASSIVE INCOME – Pat Flynn
A&B GROUP THERAPY (Music Podcast)
1.2.4 Online Courses
I ran my first online course last year and made over $2500 doing so. I also made a bunch of contacts from talented individuals who took the class.
Again it requires a lot of upfront work but the ongoing work can be significantly less by comparison. There are many platforms that are built for you to specifically offer courses.
Or you can simply create your own on your website through a series of emails.
All of these are essentially free platforms for creating online courses:
Claroline
Coursecraft
Coursesites
Learnotopia
Moodle
Pathwright
Peer 2 Peer University
Rcampus
Udemy
1.2.5 Membership Site
Although this has been around forever I’ve particularly started noticing it quite recently and I LOVE IT. At least as a business model.
The idea is basically to create a community of like-minded individuals and give them access to each other as well as instruction to help them achieve their mutal goals.
The math on these is quite astounding, as you generally see people charge between $20-$100/month. That means for each sign up they are getting a monthly recurring income of $20-$100. So, if you can get a few hundred sign ups leveraging your audience, well, do the math.
A few of the ones I am aware of (though there are many, that’s for sure) are:
Entrepreneur On Fire’s Podcasting Paradise – A community for podcasters from John Dumas.
Sean Ogle’s Enter China - Creating a community for people who want to do business in China.
Tom Ewer Freelance Writing – Community for Freelance Writers (coming soon).
Tropical MBA’s Dynamite Circle – An invite only community for entrepreneurs. I currently belong to this one.
Tung Tran Cloud Living Membership - Community For niche website builders.
1.2.6 PPC (Pay Per Click) Marketing
Most people have heard of adsense, which is Google’s advertising network. In reality, this is only one of over a hundred different ad networks.
These ads work off a variety of models whereby your pay is relative to the exposure the ad gets. What is actually required (a view, a click, a sign up) varies.
Ads come in a variety of forms, such as banners (of all different sizes), links, videos, and more. Pay per click marketing means that you get paid every time the ad gets clicked.
It is one of the most common forms of ad networks because, unlike a view, the advertiser has greater confidence that the user has purposefully interacted with the ad in some way.
Chitika - Develops real-time, scalable, on-demand contextual targeting services to help online businesses leverage their two biggest assets: content and online. Similar to AdSense.
Clicksor - Clicksor offers webmasters the opportunity to earn additional income by using a selection of clickable text or targeted contextual banners on their websites or blogs. Payouts are made by PayPal with a minimum payout of $20.
<div style="color: #222222; font-family: Georgia, Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size